Fustic Tree
Maclura tinctoria

Family: Moraceae

What it is like

Fustic Tree or Maclura tinctoria is a yellow dye producing tree that can be found in South America. The yellow dye, known as fustic, is used for coloring khaki fabric for military apparels. The tree usually grows about 15 - 30 m tall with a dense and spreading crown. The bole is straight and cylindrical, and can be up to 60 cm in diameter. The leaves are oval and with teeth along the edge. The fruit has a sweet, succulent pulp that can be eaten raw. The bark is astringent, tonic, and vermifuge. The wood is hard, heavy, strong, tough, and durable. The plant is grown from seed.

Maclura tinctoria is a deciduous Tree growing to 20 m (65ft) by 15 m (49ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10. The plant is not self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers dry or moist soil.

Height (m): 20

Where it is found

Moist or usually dry thickets or forest in the tierra caliente, common in the plains and lowlands of Guatemala. Found in a wide range of forest formations in Brazil, especially in secondary growth.

S. America - Argentina, Paraguay north to the Caribbean and through Central America to Mexico.

Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed

Countries/locations it is found in

Brazil; Bolivia, Plurinational State of; Mexico; Guatemala; Honduras; Belize; El Salvador; Nicaragua; Costa Rica; Panama?; Colombia; Ecuador; Peru; Argentina; Paraguay; Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of; Guyana; Suriname; French Guiana; Cayman Islands; Cuba; Dominican Republic; Haiti; Jamaica; Puerto Rico; Virgin Islands, U.S.; Barbados; Grenada; Martinique; Saint Lucia; Trinidad and Tobago; Curaçao, Africa, Antilles, Argentina, Belize, Central America, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guiana, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, North America, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Sierra Leone, South America, Suriname, Venezuela, West Africa, West Indies,

How it is used

Food

Rating: 2

Fruit - raw. A succulent, sweet tasting pulp. The fruit is about 2cm in diameter.

Medicine

Rating: 2

The bark is astringent, tonic and vermifuge, in large doses it is purgative.

Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.

Purgative: A drastic laxative causing a cleansing or watery evacuation of the bowels, usually with a griping pain.

Tonic: Improves general health. Slower acting than a stimulant, it brings steady improvement.

Vermifuge: Expels and kills internal parasites.

Other

Rating: 4

Agroforestry Uses: A natural pioneer plant in its native range, and supplying food, medicines and commodities, this species should be a good choice as a pioneer for establishing a woodland garden, although its growth rate is only moderate. Other Uses The wood is valued as a source of dyes. The colouring principle, maclurin, gives a yellowish brown or khaki colour much used for military uniforms. With other dyes it gives various colours for cotton and silk materials, and also a permanent black. All parts of the plant exude a yellow latex when wounded. The heartwood is of various shades of yellow to light green, lustrous, becoming reddish or brownish on exposure; it is clearly demarcated from the white sapwood. The texture is usually fine; the grain variable, often interlocked; luster is high; odour and taste are lacking or not distinctive. The wood is hard, heavy, tough, strong, and durable with a fairly straight or somewhat interwoven close grain. It is not very difficult to work, finishes smoothly, and takes a good polish. It is sometimes used in regions where it is plentiful for interior finish, cart wheels, furniture and other purposes.

Dye: Plants that provide dyes.

Furniture: A few miscellaneous uses that do not fit easily into other headings.

Latex: A source of rubber.

Pioneer: Plants, usually trees and shrubs, that can be used to reforest land.

Wood: A list of the trees and shrubs that are noted for having useful wood.

Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.

How it is grown

Requires a sunny position. Prefers a moist soil. Succeeds in most soils. Young plants have a moderate rate of growth. A dioecious tree, both male and female forms need to be grown if seed is required.

Propagating it: Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a partially shaded position in a nursery seedbed. A low germination rate can be expected, with the seed sprouting within 10 - 20 days. Cuttings of half-ripe wood.

Best place to grow:

Habit: Tree

Hardiness: 10-12

Growth: Medium

Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)

Shade: No shade

Moisture: Dry, moist

Things to keep in mind

Its other names

Local names

Fustic Tree, Amarillo, Ishuk, Macano, Mora, Mora grande, Moro, Sota, Tatajuba, Tata yegua, Tsejenet,

Synonyms

Broussonetia plumerii Spreng. Broussonetia tinctoria (L.) Kunth Broussonetia zanthoxylon (L.) Mart.